Barely two weeks into August and it feels like fall this
morning. I’m sitting here wishing that I’d give into the urge to turn the
furnace on to take the chill out of the house. My yard on the other hand looks like
a lush, dew-touched jungle in the early sun. Plants need thinning, trees need
trimming, weeds need pulling and the woodpeckers are pecking on their feeding
log near-by. They’re the only birds I’m feeding these days. I do see
an occasional hummingbird coming by to check out the big ball of pink otherwise known as a begonia that sits by my window screen. They’re not impressed. Ungrateful creatures, I
bought it just for them.
Earlier this week the Gathering Girls got together for our
First Mondays brunch. We have a seventh member now, invited in by unanimous consent. I like her a lot and we discovered Monday that she’s got a background in
art. What are the chances that three out of seven random woman looking for
friends would have art in common? Our little spin-off group from the senior
hall has been doing brunches since early spring and back then I had visualized we’d
be doing more summer outings than the two-three we’ve done in addition to the
brunches. I forgot how old we all are and how that factors into how far people are
willing/able to walk in peruse of fun. Still, I’m counting the experiment in
trying to organize us a success. Did I mention that I appointed myself the group’s
secretary who sends out a mass email reminder before the brunches and another
of ‘minutes from the brunch’ afterward to keep us all on the same page regarding
future plans? Yes, I can officially say I now have post-widowhood friends. It’s
been a long haul finding them and it took an adjustment in how I define
friendships.
New topic: I get my health insurance through an employee’s
retiree trust and they are leaning on us to change from Traditional Medicare to
Medicare Advantage PPO. It’s voluntary now but how long will that last? I went
to a meeting this week about the plan because I’m stressed out about making
this decision. Literally half the doctors in town---all attached to the largest
hospital---are out-of-network for the advantage plan but, for the most part, I
don’t use that hospital or their doctors anyway. I hate changes like this! I
hate that our entire country’s healthcare system seems to be pulling apart at
the seams. I hate that I can’t be young again when all I had to worry about was
measles, mumps and running with scissors.
In addition to the insurance meeting and brunch with the
Gathering Girls, I had my second (and last) painting lesson followed by going
to a Big Band music concert in the park. Another day I had lunch with my book
club plus old friends from out of state were in town and we had dinner
together. But the biggest time-consumer project this week was getting my
carpeting cleaned. Everything small had to be moved out of the way in four
rooms and then carried back again after the carpet dried. Last year when it was
cleaned the dog vomited on it soon after the guys left. I have never had a dog
who up-chucks as often as Levi does and no matter how hard I try to get a paper
under him or him moved to a hard surfaced floor when I hear those telltale retching,
gagging sounds, he resists. He seems to think vomit belongs on carpeting which
is why I pay an extra $100 to have them treated with Scotchgard. It works. Sign
me up for one of their commercials where I’d get paid to say, “Levi puked here
and there and it didn't stain! It sits on the surface waiting for me to
clean it up.”
Back tracking to the concert in the park: When Don was alive
we went every summer Tuesday but this was only the second one I’ve gone since he passed away. Gosh, it was fun! B.L. and I had dropped our chairs off
before walking across the park to get ice cream and when we got back we
discovered that a couple had moved our chairs back a row and put theirs in
their place. Who does that? We got our revenge laughing when a bird came by and
pooped on the guy’s down-under hat. I’d forgotten how much fun it is to people
watch at free concerts. My favorite was a guy strutting around in cheap, red gym shorts
that at first glance looked like they had a girlie ruffle at the bottom and
with them he was wearing red high-topped leather boots. On the opposite end of
the ‘classiness scale’ was a couple who danced to nearly every song---songs like,
Stormy Weather, Red Sails in the Sunset,
String of Pearls, and Georgia. A
grandmother dancing in a long, bumpy lumpy pink knit dress was also entertaining
to watch. She was holding a towheaded boy who in turn was holding a black baby
doll while five little kids ran circles around and around her feet. Other
people watchers watching B.L. and I giggling over silly comments whispered
between us probably thought we were two seventy year olds acting like seven. I
don’t care. The world would be a better place with more silliness and laughter.
©
This video of movie dance scenes mashed up has nothing to do with this blog.
It's just fun to watch.
